Florida teacher faces drunk driving charge after traffic stop

A high school teacher was taken into custody by Florida police for driving under the influence on April 15. Officers concluded that the 56-year-old woman was impaired after pulling her over for driving erratically. The incident took place shortly after 7 a.m. in Estero. The teacher told officers that she was on her way to work at the time.

Police responded after receiving a number of calls about a car that had been observed on the Imperial highway in the vicinity of Terry Street. The callers stated that the car was being driven very slowly and veering across the roadway. A deputy pulled the car over after allegedly observing the same erratic behavior. When he approached the vehicle, the deputy said that the woman’s eyes appeared to be glassy. He also said that she reacted slowly when he asked her questions, and she was unsteady on her feet when asked to exit her vehicle.

According to reports, the deputy concluded that the woman was intoxicated after she performed poorly during a field sobriety test. However, the woman maintained that she had not been drinking and denied having taken any prescription medications that would impair her ability to operate a car. She also questioned the validity of the traffic stop, saying that she had not been speeding. The woman later submitted to two Breathalyzer tests, which returned readings of .258 percent and .273 percent according to reports. These blood alcohol levels are more than three times the legal driving limit in Florida of .08 percent.

Penalties for drunk driving in Florida can be severe, and higher blood alcohol levels may lead to additional sanctions even when no accidents or injuries are involved. However, the tests used to determine a driver’s level of impairment may not always be reliable, and their results could be challenged by a criminal defense attorney. People suffering from certain medical conditions may perform poorly during a field sobriety test even when they are sober, and if the equipment is not maintained properly or calibrated correctly, Breathalyzer units may return inaccurate readings.